Flight of Fancy — July by Ewert Leaf

Grab your passport and a martini as you are transported back to ‘the golden era of travel’ in Australian luggage brand July’s newest store in Melbourne’s QV, on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation. Ewert Leaf’s design brings retro jetsetter chic to the store’s modest footprint, working in concert with the stylish colour palette of July products.

In the middle of the Melbourne CBD is the last place one would expect to find a retro airport lounge, yet this is exactly what has been created in July’s newest store, designed by Ewert Leaf to invoke all the luxury of jet-setting in the 1960s, complete with a custom fibreglass waiting lounge and departure board. The authenticity of the design is unparalleled; material choices such as marbled linoleum and pressed aluminium sheeting are evocative references to the period when airline travel was glamorous, hostesses were dressed by Emilio Pucci and your in-flight meal was lobster and champagne.

Rounded edges and sweeping lines set the mood, with miniature white ceramic tiles following the elegant curves, accompanied by soft texturing of the beige Bloom paint.

Rounded edges and sweeping lines set the mood, with miniature white ceramic tiles following the elegant curves, accompanied by soft texturing of the beige Bloom paint. Banal necessities such as the point of sale and a storeroom are not overlooked as opportunities to have fun with the design; instead, a pair of parallel copper passages retreat from the back of the store, a thick umber linen curtain alluding that the departure lounge must lay beyond. Elegant world clocks are set in the timber grain joinery, which unfolds to become the product shelving – even the design of the clocks is another nod to the retro aesthetic. The washed tonal palette matches July’s product range, stacks of sky blue and sandy pink polycarbonate luggage completing the effect.

A trio of branded display carts in the middle of the space showcases July’s range of functional accessories. The round-edged rectangular carts are panelled in aluminium, two of which are inset in unfinished cork panelling, the third in clamshell pink microfibre. As well as going that step further to complete the theme of the design, these soft surfaces offer an engaging materiality for patrons as they move through the store. The custom bellboy that greets one on entry is equal parts ironic and impressive. With a bronze-coloured arch and matching ceramic tiles inlaid to complete the effect, it is a wholly unnecessary addition to the space whose extravagance is the cherry on the cake for the whole design.

The classic look of the new store reflects the considered design of July’s product range.

The classic look of the new store reflects the considered design of July’s product range. Harking back to a time when things were built to last and anywhere in the world was just a glamorous aeroplane journey away, Ewert Leaf has captured all the nostalgia and sophistication of a bygone era.